ArticleAutism : the international journal of research and practice2026
The healthcare experiences of middle and older age autistic women in the United Kingdom.
Article in Autism : the international journal of research and practice, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Exploring Autistic People's Experiences of and Attitudes Towards Cervical Screening: A Mixed-Methods Study.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2026Article
- Article
- Autistic traits and suicidality in midlife and old age: investigating mediating effects of mental health and social connectedness.Nature. Mental health · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Autistic women experience a higher prevalence of physical and mental health conditions compared with autistic men and non-autistic women, plus greater premature mortality and a higher suicide risk. However, little is known about autistic women's experiences of healthcare, particularly in middle and later life. We aimed to explore autistic women's perspectives on accessing healthcare services in the United Kingdom. Fifteen autistic women aged between 51 and 73 years participated in semi-structured interviews, which were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Four main themes were generated: (1) Stigma and stereotypes in professionals' understanding of autism leading to poor-quality care, (2) Accumulation of negative healthcare experiences reducing participants' confidence in services, (3) Efforts required to navigate healthcare systems and (4) The future: age-related concerns and hopes for change. The autistic women in this study reported multiple barriers to accessing healthcare and they felt stigmatised by repeated negative interactions with healthcare providers. Intersections between age and gender affected how participants felt they were perceived in healthcare settings; specifically, participants felt that being an older woman contributed to their autism-related needs being overlooked or misunderstood. Implications for services and directions for future research are discussed.Lay abstract
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Registered trials
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